Occupational Medicine & Health Affairs
Open Access

Abstract

This qualitative research is aimed to study the impact of work and work place on quality of life of people running small businesses, with the help of UHC in Thailand. The research method used is in-depth interviews and participatory observation with more than 50 street food sellers in Bangkok. The results revealed that most of them (more than 70%) are females of middle age (30-60 years old) with children in the family and with less than high school education. They were in crucial debt that they had to pay daily/monthly average of 20% of interest with principle. They invested small amount of money and borrowed some from illegal loan lenders because they had no credit or any bank accounts. Their work places were along the streets in downtown or crowded communities. The impact of work places were air pollution from near by motorcycle queues, dusty streets, sometime road accidents, noisy places, and heat. Sometimes, they move to other places carrying heavy food containers with the thought that, it may be able to make more money. They get up very early in the morning to buy raw materials from the markets, prepare food and spend the whole day to sell their food products with little time to rest. The impact of all this on their quality of life includes problems of physical health, emotional health and social health. Physical health problems include back and knee pain, skin irritation from cooking food and heat etc.; emotional health problems include stress, worried about financial support and daily payment in the family and future strain; and problems of social health include no social security, family disparities because of no time to take care of children, some of their partners were heavy drinkers and their children have to leave the schools and some of them were drug abused too. Universal health coverage in Thailand had been set up since 2001 with the concept of “Health for All”. As of now, 99% of the Thai population is covered through a comprehensive healthcare package that ranges from health prevention and primary care to hospitalization due to traffic accidents, to renal replacement therapy and access to ART treatment for HIV. This UHC has helped people who have no security insurance. The research suggests to sustain the UHC policy along with good strategies for health prevention and health promotion to these groups of people and to create the finance support systems to stop the “shark loan” and vicious cycle of their life.

Biography

Email: dusadee_cha@yahoo.com